Once, in the Afternoon
by ThanksForThat
Summary: Was supposed to be a one-shot future fic that takes place one year after everyone has left the loft, and probably 2 years after N J broke up, but now it will be three chapters. They meet for afternoon drinks. It gets flirty. Thanks for reading!
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Was supposed to be a one-shot but is now three chapters. A future fic that takes place one year after everyone has left the loft, and probably 2 years after N + J broke up, so I guess AU too. They meet for afternoon drinks. It gets flirty. Hope you like it.**

 **Once, In the Afternoon**

She spots him walking in. She'd been sitting for ten minutes already, sipping her pink wine. Always on time, that Jessica Day. She imagined some third party narrating this scene. That's what they'd say – something about her perpetual timeliness. Well, maybe. Because Nick isn't really late – she was actually _early_ , and _he_ was on time. So kudos to Nick.

And more kudos to Nick, Jess is thinking, as he sidles up to her bistro table in the outdoor section of the bar they're at, and he's looking _hot_. People-watching outside at dusk with a glass of alcohol is just the absolute best. She's a little buzzed, and she's definitely watching people, but she's mostly watching Nick, who is looking _hot,_ did she already say that?Light grey short-sleeved button-up and jeans that make her blush a little. Let's just say they _fit_.

He leans down and gives her a Euro-style kiss on the cheek, but this is Nick, so she assumes it was an accident, and that he only nailed it by happenstance. It made her feel airy and Parisian, sophisticated and beautiful, just with that one motion that didn't even seem like something he'd do. Then he sits opposite her and settles into his chair. The waitress followed him over, so she's hovering as they say hello.

"Hey Jess. It's really great to see you." Nick says. His eyes rove all over her face and shoulders, lingering on her arms and her chest, really un-self-consciously. Then again, he's a man, and men do that.

"I'm happy to see you, too, Nick." Jess says. She watches his eyes roving. The wine is _in_ her, and she decides she likes the roving. He's made her feel this way before, and she's always liked it. And besides, are those arm muscles? She sees them, clearly. They're Nick's arm muscles, and she likes those too. They're definitely new.

He asks for a craft beer when he's ready, to that same hovering waitress who has been standing right there this whole time, kind of staring at Nick, and Jess tells the waitress she'd like another pink wine, please, because hers is 67% gone now, and Jess is glad when she walks away, finally.

She hasn't seen Nick for almost six months. The last time was at Schmidt's birthday party. Nick had brought a date and Jess had gotten drunk and it made her hate that he was with a date, and she felt like he was ignoring her, but it was probably the other way around. Later on, when she left with a cop friend of Winston's who offered to drive her home, she saw Nick looking wistfully over his shoulder as she left. But he was with that cute blonde chick, so whatever. She didn't owe him an explanation.

And she _definitely_ wasn't going to explain anything about later that night, when she was alone in her bed, and she instructed Nick to do what he did to her that time right after her birthday when they were alone on the roof. The orgasm she'd had that night, her fist clutching his shirt and her other hand holding tight to his bicep as he kept them joined for a while more, sending exquisite electric jolts through her body, expertly maneuvering his hips against her—had made her cry in the best way possible.

And the one she created that night after Schmidt's party featured her mental image of Nick, pressing her against the low wall of the rooftop, and whispering her name as he lifted her dress and hooked his arm under her leg before he slid inside her and she lost herself so hard– that one had made her cry too. Only this time she didn't cry because she felt like a demi goddess writhing under his sensuous calloused hands. Because these were her own hands and she could never, try as she might, get them to do what Nick's did.

It was because she missed Nick, and she was tired of how he wouldn't leave her alone when she was by herself in her bed with just her thoughts and maybe something with batteries, maybe not, and it had taken her five and a half months to contact him again. She'd asked him to meet her for a drink, and it was an email because she didn't want to intrude through some more urgent-sounding means.

He'd responded like it was urgent, though. Less than five minutes later. It took a few days to align schedules, but now here they were.

"You look great." Nick said.

Jess smiled. "Thanks, Nick. So do you."

He looked into his lap for a minute. Then he spoke rapidly, "I was surprised to hear from you. It's been a while, right?"

"Yeah, it has. And we didn't really get a chance to talk much the last time – "

"—at Schmidt's birthday," he kind of cuts her off but it's actually more like he's joining her as the co-creator of the thought. "Yeah, we didn't. I was just…" He pauses, looks into her eyes, "…you know. I'd brought a… a friend, so…"

"Yeah, it wasn't as easy to catch up. I understand." Jess wraps up the thought, looks at her wine, and then over at a couple passing in the street.

He looks sorry about that whole thing, even though he didn't need to be, and he doesn't say it out loud or anything. But his face has the most perfect expression for the moment and it makes her say something dumb.

"Nick, I've been thinking about you a lot."

His eyebrows raise. He leans in.

"You… you have?" He stutters like a little kid. "How so?" He recovers. Nice finish. Steady landing. Ball's back in her court.

She takes a big gulp of wine, puts down her glass. She loses her nerve somewhere in there, skitters around a bit.

"Well, you know. We used to see each other every day. I know the loft era has been over for a year, but…"

Sip of wine, stall, stall, look at people, another, bigger sip of wine.

"…sometimes I really miss you." Phew. There it is. She said it.

He doesn't hesitate at all before he responds.

"Hm. Sometimes. You miss me."

Her eyes flash up at him. "Yeahhh. I do."

Sip of beer, and his tongue darts out to clear his upper lip.

"Well. That's pretty interesting, Jess."

Nick has an odd smile playing across his face as he draws out the sentence.

She can't help but smile too.

"Oh yeah? You think that's interesting?"

He nods, smirks a little. "Yeahhh. I do."

She smirks back.

"Tell me why, Nick."

He's mostly done with his beer and they both nod when the waitress inquires about refills. Then he focuses on her eyes, wills her to hold his gaze, and she is entranced.

"I think it's interesting, Jess, because I miss you too." He clears his throat. "Sometimes."

She shivers a little, and Nick leans back in the slim chair as he waits for her to respond, but the chair creaks ominously as it sits unevenly on the sidewalk. He uses the chair as an excuse to move, picking it up and planting it on the other side of the table. Now he's just to her right, definitely less than ninety degrees. He turns his body so it's angled towards her. He leans back again and crosses his ankle over his knee, drinks the last of his beer.

She takes the cue, turns her own body so she's facing Nick, and puts her elbow on the table top, threading her fingers through her hair and twirling a long piece. She takes another sip of wine.

"Well, it's no good for us to be going around missing each other."

He breathes in. "No, it's not."

Their eyes are locked. Another wine and another beer arrive, but neither of them look up.

"Maybe we should do something about that."

She feels bold, but the feeling disappears when Nick leans into her. They're so close now. He could basically touch any part of her. She makes note of where his hands are – one on the beer, and one holding the front of his shin near his ankle, his elbow resting along his thigh. That's the hand that's so close. She tries so hard not to wish he would reach out for her, caress her hair, maybe squeeze the soft flesh above her hip bone, let his thumb wander a little to press on the sensitive place where her thigh meets her body.

"Like what, Jessica? Please… tell me what you think we should do about that."

She sucks in her breath when she feels it, which happens before she sees it. The long fingers of his left hand – the first two – are extended. They're slowly, delicately stroking the calf of her crossed leg, right at the top, just below her knee, drawing tiny, delicate circles and sliding back and forth along her smooth skin. They're moving like that skin belongs to them, like it's their responsibility to keep it happy.

The contact renders her temporarily mute, and she moans softly.

"Mmm." She breathes out. "I…I'm not sure."

"Oh, no?" He asks. He's completely taken with her response to such a light, mild touch. He could be doing so much more than that. God, he wants to.

"Do you think something like this would help?" he asks, and then he slowly places his palm on her knee, sneaking his fingers underneath it and into the space where her crossed legs meet. She grabs his wrist and feels his pulse pounding, pulls herself closer to his face until they're inches apart. He smells _really_ good, like something that combines old and contented with new and exhilarating, and it's intoxicating.

She doesn't let go of his wrist, stares at all the places where they're touching now, thinks about the constellation of connecting points they've created.

Then she tugs gently at him, and he lets go of her knee, places his hand on the outside of her thigh, squeezes with subtle urgency. He looks at her face, at her eyes, and she can feel the space disappearing, and oh god, this is really happening.

When they kiss, their tongues are cold from drinking, and their lips are searing with heat and the contrast sends lightning flashes across her closed eyelids and thunder rumbles somewhere in her center as his fingers snake up her neck along her jaw and behind to the back of her neck. They're winding into her hair, while his thumb is drawing those same delicate circles along the skin of her throat, and she moans into his mouth until she can feel him smiling.

She pulls away, breathless. She's riveted, can't stop looking at his eyes, at his face.

He's still smiling, and his hands are exactly where she wants them.

Jess breathes deeply and closes her eyes.

The waitress hovers, but then she nods and disappears when Nick motions for the check.

 **xxxxxxx**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Okay, bad news: The one-shot continues to elude me. But also, good news: I really enjoyed writing more for this story, and I'm hoping it's an improvement over my first one.**

 **Here's Chapter 2 – I hope you like it! I will post the 3rd and final chapter in a few days. Thanks for your comments, encouragement, and inspiration! All of it really means a lot.**

* * *

Chapter 2

Technically there is nothing perfect about what's happening right now because there are a half dozen people watching as Nick and Jess very indiscreetly stumble into a random alleyway, and the spectacle is infinitely more appealing to passers-by than decorum. And adding to the imperfection is a brick jammed against Jess' left shoulder blade, and also the afternoon brightness, and _dammit_ , most of the bystanders are sticking around. Because drunk people making out in an alley is funny.

But despite these glitches—and let's be honest here, the two of them are mostly oblivious to the glitches—the sounds Jess makes as Nick is feverishly kissing her, pressed against the brick wall with her arms thrown around his shoulders- are creating a feedback loop of _very_ perfect sensations. Nothing is slowing down, everything is building and Nick feels amazing.

But he's also beginning to wonder in a tiny way if this is whole thing is such a good idea.

And he's wondering that because his hand is halfway up her dress now and _god, her skin,_ and he's forgotten how soft it feels—like a rare, fine silk—and the way she gets goose bumps as he trails his fingers up the outside of her thigh. And women in general feel pretty good, but this is _Jess_ who is grabbing his ass and then working her hand down to pull his thigh between her legs so she can press herself against it, and it's _Jess_ who is dragging her fingernails through the hair on his scalp, and these sexy, sexy vibrations coming from her throat are imperceptible to human ears, but are, like, _extremely_ perceptible to other things, such as Nick's penis.

 _Dammit, people, yeah, we'll get a room if you all get a life,_ Nick is thinking with like, 0.6% of his brain, but anyway, he pulls away from her because he can see only one trajectory for this whole scenario, and _none of you idiots are invited, so get the hell out of here!_

He clears his throat with his large hands on her slim waist, and looks to where the people were, and they're (mostly) gone now, so he can say what he wants to say.

"Hey, I'm glad you asked me to get a drink with you."

She's flushed and flustered and kind of wondering why they're talking instead of doing the other stuff. The awesomer stuff from a few seconds ago.

"Yeah, Nick, me too. I've wanted to… ask you. For a while now."

She leans forward and kisses his neck, which makes him close his eyes, and with his eyes closed, it's a little easier for him to say the next thing.

"Well I'm really glad you did, Jess, and the timing couldn't have been better. It was actually kind of perfect, so I don't want you to think this is, like, a rebound thing or anything."

She's mostly listening to his words, but with those last few her kissing stops right on his jugular. She can feel his pulse fluttering on her lips, which move against his skin when she asks,

"Wait, _what_? What rebound thing?"

She steps away and looks at him, begins to push his hands away too. She feels all the tendrils of her being that were out and free and gallivanting all over him just a few moments ago start to recoil and retreat back into herself at that word.

 _Rebound?_

Crap. Nick kind of hates himself right now. But the last person he made out with was Kate, and that was only last week. And when Jess emailed him out of the blue to get together, also just last week, her email was the thing that made him shower after three days of moping around his apartment. His friend, Jess, wanted to see him, and that's _why_ he showered. But the thought – _I wonder what Kate is doing right now_ – that's what he was thinking while he _took_ the shower.

Kate was the blond woman—Nick's date—from Schmidt's six-months-ago birthday party. No one since he and Jess dated had really made much of an impression or had had much of an impact. But Kate kind of blindsided him. She was a whirlwind – she was beautiful and exciting, and she was a mess. She was disorganized, flighty, and volatile. And she made Nick feel like he _really_ had his shit together. And that made him feel great. And he got caught up in taking care of her over the six-ish months they were dating, until he found some questionable texts from an ex-boyfriend and shortly after that, a pair of mystery boxers in her bedroom.

Of course Nick can't stand infidelity, and of course he confronted her, hoping for the best, but she'd barely offered any defense, and then she stole a bunch of his t-shirts and said she never wanted to see him again, and a part of him was like, _good riddance,_ but more of him felt wounded, betrayed, and so hurt. It was hard for him to stop thinking about it—about her.

And it was like that for a few days until the email from Jess came and when he opened it everything started to seem like maybe it could feel good again. Taking a shower definitely helped, so there was that.

And now here they are, but the trajectory has clearly shifted somewhat. But what was he supposed to do? He had to be honest, even more so now than before the whole Kate thing happened. Everything is still sort of fresh, right? Plus, he honestly had no idea when she emailed him to get together that things with Jess would play out like this.

"I'm sorry, Jess. I didn't mean to make things weird or anything. I didn't expect any of this—" insert Nick's large hand waving around between them "—to happen. Or anything. And I just thought you should know."

"What are you talking about, Nick? What _rebound thing?_ What did you want me to know? _"_

She asked it, but now she's looking around for her purse, which she'd let fall to the ground in the flurry of her partiality to holding onto Nick's ass, and now Nick is starting to feel really dumb. He wants to take it all back and put his hands where they were and put his lips where they were and forget about Kate.

And he kind of does start to forget about Kate, actually, and he has Jess to thank for that – again. Because now Jess is heading back down the alleyway to the street, and she's holding her purse and getting smaller. The vacuum she's creating with her departure kind of sucks out all thoughts of Kate and they're replaced by thoughts of a receding Jess. Nick is finding that one single thing way more unsettling than anything Kate ever did, or ever could do.

He watches dumbly as Jess walks like someone who wants to go somewhere else now, and not at all like someone who might still be interested in nailing the ex-boyfriend she's been seriously pining over for the better part of the past year.

That latter someone would have probably waited for that ex-boyfriend, would have held his hand, or maybe taken his arm and wrapped it around herself. She would have smiled up at him with hooded eyes filled with desire, and there he'd see that the original trajectory was still very much intact. And he would have thanked his lucky stars, as he leaned down to kiss her again, forgetting every other woman he'd ever cared for as he began to lead her down the few blocks to his apartment.

* * *

"I'm really drunk, Nick," she says when he finally catches up with her. He's out of breath and also really drunk, but maybe a little less so now with all the manic trotting, now that the blood is rushing around so much, getting all oxygenated and whatnot.

She stops on the sidewalk, and they're closer to her apartment now, than they are to his. He makes a mental note of that as he reaches for her, takes her arms, and tries to connect again. But she won't look at him.

"Jess—hey." His voice is soft.

"I thought you knew… that I was dating Kate. It was a new thing when I brought her to Schmidt's birthday, and I know we didn't really talk much, but I just thought…"

He trails off as he sees her eyes filling with tears, and she's annoyed. She's annoyed that she had no idea, and that no one told her, and also that she cares so much about it, and that the caring part hasn't gone away, still doesn't seem to be going away.

She reaches up and wipes her eyes.

"Yeah, I didn't know, Nick. I had no idea what that was—who she was, and I'm sorry—I'm sorry I'm being so stupid about it. It's fine, really, but—"

"—No, Jess, you're not being—"

"—of course, you know, you're gonna date people. You can even date them for a while sometimes, and you think it's going to… be something—real, you know? And sometimes it works out. But sometimes it just doesn't."

She looks at him, feeling more hurt than she thinks she has a right to, but it's there, so.

"And you know, to be honest, it never even occurred to _me_ that it would ever occur to _you_ that I might be a… that I could ever be a _rebound_. Not to _you_ , of all people, Nick."

She sniffs; he's just listening. He's feeling a little sad and a little confused.

"And yeah, I get it that you're in a phase where you want to have a distraction, but I can't do it. I can't do that for you, Nick."

Jess forces a smile and kind of maneuvers herself out of his semi-embrace, and she believes this whole thing is over now that she's stated her boundaries.

She gives his arm a friendly pat and there's a stab in her chest but she says it anyway, because she means it when she tells him,

"I'm sure you won't have any trouble finding someone who can do that for you."

She starts walking away again and he's speechless because it really seems like what he _thought_ he'd said back there in the alley is the complete opposite of what it seems like she heard.

"Hey, wait, Jess. Please."

She hasn't really gone far, but she's heading toward her apartment, and he takes a few long strides till he's right next to her. He wants her to stop. He wants to connect with her again, so badly.

"I was trying to say the right thing back there, Jess, but I think it was exactly the _wrong_ thing."

He stops walking and grasps the tops of her arms again, forces her to look at him, says the first thing that comes to mind.

"Jess, it was because of you."

She bites.

"What do you mean? _What_ was because of me?"

He really wants to answer her, he wants to fix this, but all the words he has right now sound truly stupid.

But he still has to take a stab at it.

"I took a shower because of you."

Nope.

She looks doubtful and scowls, shaking her head a little.

He tries again.

"Everyone is a rebound in the grand scheme of things, am I right?!"

No.

She's staring at him because he's making this worse, and he knows he didn't succeed in expressing enough, or expressing anything, really. And the worst part is that she's right that he wants a distraction, but that's seriously only because he can't stop thinking about kissing her again. He is focused on nothing else but her lips and the way she's breathing and the way she smells and the infinite blue of her eyes.

"Nick—" she starts.

"It's _all_ because of you, Jess." Now he's sounding a little panicky, like it's now or never, because he really doesn't want her to walk away anymore – or ever again, actually.

Her voice is quiet.

"All of _what_ is because of me?"

She knows she's pressing him and she doesn't care, because it's working and he bursts.

"Everything is because of you, okay? All of the _everything_ , Jess, because you're at the center like the mountain-queen of all of it, and anything before you and anything after you just goes way, way out there, like, all of those other things and those other people just go away when you do anything or say anything, you know? Because as soon as you say anything or want anything, Jess… it's like, I just can't—I can never say no to you, and I don't want to say no to you. Because you're all of the everything and you're at the top, Jess. You're at the top of the center of everything ever, ever."

Nick exhales long and slow, checks off a box somewhere in the ether because _damn,_ that felt right. It felt _so_ right, but he's wondering if it _sounded_ right. His heart is racing, but by the look on her face, he'd give it a solid 'maybe'. But that's like a C+/B- and that's definitely passing, so he feels happy.

She looks up at him and smiles shyly.

"I'm at the top of the center, huh?" She points her smile down at their feet, which are pointing at each other, as she lowers her long lashes, and the way they fall onto her cheeks kind of squeezes his heart. He just nods a little.

"Well, that's curious. I didn't realize."

"It's the truth."

"It's the truth? Are you sure?"

His heart is still pounding. The floodgates are open. It's out there now, and it feels exhilarating and panic-inducing and chest-constricting and really fucking amazing.

"Yeah, Jess. I'm sure." He swallows.

"I mean, I _want_ to believe you."

"I'm sure, Jess. I'm sure. I'm sure."

His head is spinning. The confession was like riding a rubber raft over a waterfall and now he's just falling, blinded by the spray of feelings and woozy from the butterflies bouncing around in his stomach.

She stares at him.

It feels like a short decade passes.

"Come over." She says, finally. She points in the direction of her apartment.

"Are you sure you want me to?" he suddenly asks, all off-beat, extra-loud robot style.

He needs to drown out the voice in his head that's calling him a complete idiot for not just nodding and following her.

He feels really lucky when she doesn't answer, just looks over her shoulder as she starts walking.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N – Final Chapter! Thanks for reading! Comments appreciated - my biggest challenge is endings! I have deep admiration for anyone who can pull off a good ending, and I aspire to be just like you some day :) Hope you like this.**

* * *

CHAPTER 3

They move in silence over the three short blocks and then they're outside her apartment building. Jess looks at him as she takes out her keys and he's not really sure what's happening. She seems amicable enough, but something's off.

They fumble a little at her door with who's holding the door for whom and everything, and her shoulder brushes against his chest and he really wants more of that. But she doesn't seem to notice as she's taking off her shoes and putting down her bag and her keys. Nick hasn't been here since he helped her move in over a year ago. He notes a warm feeling in his chest, as the late afternoon sunlight soaks the place in an orange glow. He feels welcome.

"Can I get you a drink?" she asks him, walking into the kitchen.

"Sure, water would be great. Thanks."

He's looking around. He sees a framed photo of the loft mates on their last day all living together. Jess looks gorgeous in the picture. She always looks gorgeous. He stares at the photo, specifically at the curve of her waist in that dress, and the way her hips flare, and that smile and those eyes, and—

"Rebound sex is a really good idea, Nick." Jess calls from the kitchen.

He freezes and holds his breath.

"What? I didn't… I mean… I wasn't—"

"I think you're still going through some stuff with… sorry, what was her name again?"

He scowls. Seriously?

"Kate." He shouts towards the kitchen.

"Right. I think you're going through some stuff with _Kate._ I think getting laid would be good for you, don't you think?"

She's coming back into the living room with two mugs of water. She puts them on the coffee table and then goes back into the kitchen. She comes back out holding a bottle of wine and two glasses.

He's not exactly sure how to respond, so he takes a few steps towards her, takes one of the glasses and the wine and puts them on her coffee table, and then he turns back to her.

But she's already darted around to the other side of the couch. She sits on it, as far away from Nick as possible.

She points to the other end. "Sit," she says, and then takes a long drink of water, keeping her eyes on him.

He sits.

"I was just saying that I think a round of rebound sex would really help you through this breakup."

"But I thought—"

"—because hair of the dog, you know?"

"Jess—"

"A good old fashioned roll in the hay, am I right?"

"Hey! Come on! I already told you—"

"You can't deny it, Nick. Some dirty tango action between the sheets, in my humble opinion, is definitely in order. You know. As a rebound thing."

"Jess! Please! You have to believe me that what was happening– back there – with us—that wasn't rebound anything."

"Yeah, that's what you said, and I totally believe you, Nick. But I'm not talking about you and me."

"Oh. You're not?"

"Ha! No way. I mean, you should definitely have rebound sex. One hundred percent."

He blinks. She sips the water.

"But you should do that with someone else who _isn't_ me."

Nick is on edge, but he still can't help but notice the way her voice quivers at that last part. He is compelled to get up and move towards her.

"Hey, sit." She holds up her hand and points to the space between the newly abandoned couch spot and his hovering ass. He puts it back down, scoots a little closer anyway, in defiance.

"Jess, I don't want to have rebound sex. I don't want to have rebound anything with anyone, and definitely not with you."

He's watching her as she considers this. She opens the wine bottle, pouring some into the two glasses. She's not convinced. She puts down the bottle and takes a swig of wine from her glass.

"Well, you and I – " she gestures between them, the pink liquid sloshing around a little. "We can't have sex now, anyway."

"Okay…"

"Because if we did that, _now_ … I mean, I think it's too soon after your whole thing with Kate to _not_ be rebound sex. Even if you say it isn't. It's really a timing thing, you know?"

He nods. She has a point there.

She takes another sip of wine and stares at him hard, starts running her fingers absently through her hair and down the back of her neck.

"And I mean, even if you, like, come over here and get really close to me right now, and you, like, start to kiss my neck, like, really, really slowly, and your voice gets real low and you say my name until we're just, like, completely making out, it would be hard for me not to wonder. It would be really hard for me not to presume you were actually thinking about Kate the whole time."

He shifts in his seat a little. He swallows hard. His voice is measured.

"Jess."

He moves a little closer. She lifts her chin, and he halts. She sips her wine.

She keeps her eyes on him, and slowly, slowly she slides her other hand across her chest, pausing for a moment before she moves it down, then up and in a little, and yeah, she's clearly massaging her breast. Nick is captivated by this, realizes his jaw is hanging open.

"—you know what I mean, Nick. Because even if you, like, put your hands all over my body, and kissed me all over, like, so intensely, and then pushed up my skirt and pressed yourself hard against me, I mean, I think I'd still probably end up deducing that you were imagining it was Kate – and not me – who was begging you to—"

"—No, Jess."

His voice is loud and he shakes his head. He knows she's just teasing him, but like, come on.

"You are so, _so_ wrong about that, Jess."

He's leaning forward on his fists as he shifts his body towards her. She's just watching him, a little breathless now. She doesn't move.

He's taking his time, and he doesn't want her to stop him again. She looks so beautiful, and it's also not helping that a deep blush has settled across her chest and her cheekbones, reddening her lips.

Nick is singularly focused and incredibly aroused.

He inches towards her. He's so close now he can almost taste her.

"If any of what you just described was actually happening, _Jessica,_ between _us –_ as in, _you_ and _me_ —I really don't think that you would have any real question in your mind about whose lips and whose body… whose insanely beautiful body I was thinking about… Like, at all, _Jess_..."

He's next to her now, and their eyes meet briefly before his lips are suddenly against the silky skin of her neck, right under her jaw. Her head drops back involuntarily as he kisses her, breathing words into her ear.

"Let me show you what I mean... _Jessica._ "

Her breath catches and she spills a little wine. She puts down the glass and her arms wind around his shoulders, her fingers trailing through his hair as he's moving his mouth down along her collarbone. It's so slow and it's driving her crazy.

"Nick…"

His eyes are closed and his lips are everywhere now.

"Jess." He says between kisses. His voice is low.

His hands are everywhere now, too, and his jeans are busy shrinking like crazy in the crotch area.

She closes her eyes and smiles as she shifts lower on the couch, finding her space underneath him, and she wraps her legs around his waist, holding him tight against her.

He presses himself into her, hard, just like she said, and slides his palm up her thigh, bringing her skirt up with it. His hips are pushing against her over and over, and when she cries out, he kisses her cheek and the corner of her eyelid, cradles her head in the palms of his hands.

He's still moving now, slowly and rhythmically, but the rest of him pauses as he looks into her eyes. Everything has shifted from flirty and bold to intense and passionate. She can feel his eyes boring into her, and she can feel where their ribcages meet, like two half-dome caves forming a single, bat- and treasure-filled orb.

"Jess, I have to tell you something."

She hears him but she can't stop meeting his pelvis with her own pulsing because it feels so fucking good to feel him like this, and god, she missed this, and she also kind of doesn't care what he has to tell her. Why can't they just keep doing this?

"Okay, what?" She wants to get on with it and then take off all their clothes.

"After I say this to you now, I never, ever want to talk about her or anyone else –ever, really, but especially not while we're doing anything like what we're doing right now—"

He leans down and his lips and tongue taste her neck, and he maneuvers his hand under her ass so he can hold onto it, so he can press into her harder.

"Oh God, Nick!" She cries out again.

"Concentrate, Jess, this'll just take a second—"

He buries his face against her shoulder, nips at her earlobes, and his whole body seems to have a mind of its own because it won't stop moving, and his voice is muffled against the curve of her neck as he speaks.

"I've been having rebound sex for the past two years."

Jess stops moving. She presses her palms against his shoulders, and he lifts his chest.

His eyes are still closed.

"Nick…" She starts. She runs her hand gently over his cheek.

His eyes open as he kisses her palm and looks at her.

"I mean it, Jess. Anything that happened since we broke up – it was just me trying to get over you and move on. But I have to confess that I had a really hard time not thinking about you. Most of the time it was impossible not to."

Her eyes get misty. She smiles a little.

He lets out a laugh that sounds like relief. "I feel kind of bad about it, actually."

She leans up and presses her cheek against his chest, wraps her arms around his torso.

"You should, Nick!" She laughs. "But now can we stop talking about all of these other women who really have no right to be horning in on our action?"

He smiles before she pulls him back down and kisses him deeply. He groans as she's grinding against him. She reaches between them to unbutton his jeans and he moves to expedite the situation, but then he stops again.

"Hey, Jess? Did you do that too?"

She looks from his hands on his fly, up to his face, feeling impatient.

"Do what?"

"You know. Have rebound sex. After we ended."

Jess looks at him and blushes, and opts to occupy herself with unbuttoning Nick's shirt instead of answering. He stills her hands with his own.

"You don't have to tell me anything you don't want to tell me, but I mean, I just told you a whole lot about what I've been thinking. So it would be cool if you wanted to share anything, too… you know?"

She just looks at him, a little like a deer in headlights.

He's tentative, but continues. "I mean, the whole reason we're even together right now is because _you_ emailed _me,_ so I thought maybe…"

"Yes, I had rebound sex." She says it flatly.

"Oh."

"But most of the time it wasn't the same as yours."

"Hm?"

"I had a lot of sex in my mind, Nick. Okay? So it was mostly just by myself. And…"

She exhales.

"…And with you. I can admit that I had a lot of sex with you in my mind."

She chances a look up at him. He looks a little smug and a little shy.

"I see."

She feels oddly unburdened. Nick seems satisfied and smiles at her as he steps out of his jeans and starts on her clothing, and then suddenly she's on her feet, pulling him to her bedroom.

As they walk, he finishes removing her garments, letting his fingers linger on her skin everywhere he can. He reaches out to unclasp her bra, inhaling with sharp pleasure as she lets it fall to the floor.

He's trailing his eyes all over her body, taking her in, and he's whispering now, almost reverently. "Later on, Jess… I want you to show me what we were doing all those times… in your mind."

She blushes again, nods a little.

At the edge of her bed they stand, taking a moment to consider what's about to happen. Nick takes her hand and pulls her to him, pressing the skin on their bodies together for the first time in two years. His voice sounds like an echo when he speaks, the words swirling through her hair and reverberating off her skin.

"One more thing, Jess."

She sighs and looks at him, waiting.

"You haven't told me exactly why I've been featuring so prominently in your sexual fantasies."

She is sick of talking. Instead she leans up on her toes and wraps her arms around his shoulders, finding his lips, letting her tongue slide against his. He sighs as his hands find their way from her hips to rove over the smooth skin of her back, squeezing her ass, and when she presses against his erection, he whimpers and her desire deepens.

His name is on her lips as they fall into the bed, newly frenzied and fully consumed with each other as she climbs on top of him. He bucks into her and holds her in place for a moment before he rolls them both so she's under him.

"God, Nick, can we please—"

And in a flash, he's totally naked, and he's easing her panties over her thighs, slowly kissing his way back up her body, savoring every inch of her ivory skin.

"I've wanted this for so long, Jess." He says, taking his time kissing each of her breasts, moving up to her neck. He slides his hardness between her legs, pushing its length against her center.

He closes his eyes, overwhelmed with pleasure and emotion, and he moves like that against her until it's too much for her, and she reaches down between them, moaning as she guides him, wonderfully slowly, inside her.

"Me too, oh my god, Nick." Her voice is low as she savors this contact, only now she's moving with a new urgency, overcome with the way their bodies fit so perfectly together, move so well when they're joined like this, and he's watching her face, her lips and her eyes.

"God, yes, Nick. God, you feel so good, I've missed you so much, Nick."

He can't remember the last time he felt so turned on, so completely enamored with someone. No one else has ever made him feel this incredible, this connected and alive. He holds her body tight against him, knowing he's nearing the edge.

With each thrust he prays that she's close too, that she takes him with her.

His hips move skillfully as he rocks into her again and again, and the sounds she's making are so hot, are making it so hard for him not to explode.

"Was this how it felt, Jess? Were we moving just like this?"

He's not sure he can hold out any longer, and she's crying out, and it's amazing and it's almost too much.

"Please, Jess. Please tell me how much you wanted to feel me inside you, doing this to you, moving with you like this."

His breathing is ragged and her voice is like a shot of the sweetest adrenaline.

"Yes, Nick, god, I love how you feel, I love it so much, I could never stop thinking about you inside me, about the way we move together, and I want you so badly—I've wanted you so much, for so long, god, yes, please, Nick, don't stop, don't stop, please don't stop."

As he lets go, he can feel her muscles clenching around him as she joins him, an explosion of euphoria and wave after wave of electricity rippling through their writhing bodies. Their rhythm slows as they ride it out.

They lay together for a few moments, before he lifts his head and looks at her, pushing aside a few damp tendrils of her hair from her neck and her forehead. He places reverent kisses in the hollow of her collarbone, his tongue flicking out along her skin. The taste of her ignites something inside him again, and he lets out a low groan and pours himself into her – into the place where his lips and tongue meet her flesh.

"I want you to tell me all of it, Jess. I want to know what you thought about when we had sex in your mind."

She kisses his shoulder and smiles at him, and he keeps going.

"Seriously. Did we do it in a pool? Or in someone's closet at a party? Or in a helicopter? Wait – were we wearing jumpsuits? Oh my god, jumpsuits! Did you have a favorite? I want to know everything, Jess, I mean it."

She closes her eyes and the smile on her face feels a bit permanent now.

"I do have a favorite."

"Tell me! I want to do all of those things to you, Jess. Tell me everything."

"Okay, I'll tell you."

He rolls onto his back beside her and settles her against him, bringing her leg over his thighs and wrapping his arm around her shoulder, tenderly playing with her hair.

"There was this one time—"

"Yeah? Was it at night? Or… ooh, was it hot morning sex? Did we do it really loud in a tent? Was this a repeat fantasy?"

She smacks him a little and giggles.

"No! No, Nick. It was just once."

"Just once?"

"Well, maybe it was the start of something, but it was just once, yeah."

"Only once, huh?"

She leans up and kisses him, her lips lingering on his stubble, her hand running through the hair on his chest. She gives him a squeeze and nestles closer.

"Yes, Nick. Just once. Once, in the afternoon…"


End file.
